Well known as an 1950s Olympic fencing great, Bob Anderson was, to us movie fanatics, the man responsible for some of cinema’s most epic sword battles. Anderson would extensively work with actors for months to ready them for the cameras in the likes of STAR WARS saga and THE LORD OF THE RING’S trilogy.
Anderson passed away in hospital 1st January 2012 aged 89.
During his career in the movies, beginning in 1952 with THE MASTER OF THE BALLANTREA training the iconic Eryol Flynn, Anderson was the man most filmmakers would rely on for epic swordplay scenes. He worked on classics like THE PRINCESS BRIDE and BARRY LYNDON as well as Bond adventures FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE and DIE ANOTHER DAY. He also appeared in front of the camera in THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK and RETURN OF THE JEDI, donning the famous helmet as Darth Vader for the epic lightsaber battles involving Mark Hamill’s Luke Skywalker.
RIP Bob Anderson, you will be greatly missed.
Source: Entertainment Weekly
